


All Over Again

by 120613



Category: The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, I Don't Even Know, M/M, Newtmas stuck in the maze, Panic Attacks, Please be gentle, my first fanfic in the fandom, newtmas - Freeform, nope no smut, procrastination nation, three-shots, whoops
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-24
Updated: 2016-06-23
Packaged: 2018-03-14 18:45:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3421544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/120613/pseuds/120613
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He didn't know why he did it. He just did. The moment he saw the doors closing and Thomas still so far away from entering the Glade. Something took over his body and Newt ran. Newt dashed through those doors.</p><p>Like his limp wasn't even there anymore.</p><p>Or in which Newt and Thomas gets stuck in the maze together after dark.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Re-Enter

“He should be back by now.” The blond paced back and forth, eyebrows creasing in concern. It doesn’t usually take this long for Thomas to return to the Glade, and the fact that Minho’s not with him, bothered him even more. Alby, who’ve been leaning on the wall next to the door all this time took a step forward.

“Calm down shuck-face. Your boyfriend’s not that stupid get lost in the maze. He’s been a runner for about… Three weeks already.” Alby chuckled nonchalantly, though his words weren’t able to calm Newt down one bit.

“Yeah, but he’s running alone today. And the door’s minutes to closing.” His British accent heavily laced in concern as he kept on biting the tip of his nail. “And he’s not my boyfriend.” The blond added, almost stopping for a while, voice wavering slightly. Alby laughed shortly before pacing back to the Homestead.

“Get somethin’ to eat Newt.” He said, not bothering to look back as he made his way to Frypan’s kitchen. Newt didn’t even bother, as he kept on standing by the entrance of the Glade, waiting to see the brunet popping out from one of the corners, running towards the Glade with an exhausted smile. Newt would always be there to greet him back.

It’s true, today was Thomas’s first day of exploring the maze all alone. Minho, hit with a wave of exhaustion after working his ass off the past few days, wasn’t able to accompany Thomas run through the maze that day, as much as he insisted to. The Med-Jacks prevented him to do so. But Thomas managed to assure everyone, that he’s starting to get the hang of being a runner and had remembered all the turns and pathways of the maze after three weeks of it. He managed to assure Newt everything was going to be okay. The brunet had asked him to trust him.

But now, Newt heavily regretted the decision of letting him run the maze alone. The clock was ticking and Thomas was nowhere to be seen. The anxiety of waiting started to claw at him from the insides. Soon, more gladers approached the entrance of the Glade one by one, standing next to him, waiting.

Time passed, and still nothing. He didn’t realize how long he’s been pacing back and forth the doors staring eagerly, felt like ages have passed.

This happened once, Newt remembered it very clearly. Just after Thomas came up on the Box. The day the maze supposedly took not only one, but all three of his closest friends. He remembered distinctively, how he’d yell out for Tommy not to do it, how he’d spent the time afterwards reassuring all the gladers that everything was going to be okay, putting up a calm front and then running off into the woods to mourn over the loss of his friends helplessly. How he’d hated his inability to do anything that time.

“Come on Tommy.” He muttered underneath his breath when he heard the door’s mechanic jeers resounding. The door was about to close and still no sign of the brunet. Newt felt his heartbeat pacing, as he faced the entrance of the maze, looking for the runner. Alby was next to him, his face completely void of emotions. Chuck and Gally were also there, along with most of the other gladers by his side, waiting anxiously.

“Come on Tommy, where are you…” The blond muttered once more, as he notice the doors, starting to shift ever so slightly.

“Let’s send someone after him.” Chuck suggested, voice laced in fear and concern. Not one even bothered to answer the poor boy. Newt kept his gaze focused on the maze, trying to find any sorts of movement from the distance.

“Slim it Newt. He managed to survive a night out there once,” Gally retorted, “I’m sure he can do that once more.” The sentence broke Newt out of his daze, as he focused his eyes on the taller male besides him. Anger and frustration piled up on him and Gally’s not making it any better.

“What does that mean? He was with Minho back then! And don’t even talk like you know what’s going on in there Gally, you’ve never even been in the shucking maze!” Newt raised his voice, before Gally had a chance to retaliate, he immediately drifted his attention towards the maze. The doors were starting to close, inches by inches, rapidly going faster. Newt felt lost. Exactly like the first time this had happened. He had no idea what to do. Staring at the dark corridor of the maze, its’ walls looming over darkly and its’ ivies covering it mid-way. It brought too many horrid memories for Newt’s likings.

He feared the maze, there was no denying it. Even when it’s his Tommy out there, he still couldn’t bring himself to move a foot across the door. And it angered him. That was the moment he saw a figure appearing from one of the corners on the far end of the corridor of the dark maze. His eyes slightly broaden and his heartbeat quickens.

“There he is! I see him!” He heard one of the gladers’ shouts. But by then, everyone knew it was impossible to make it. The door was half-way to closing and everyone could see the brunet leaning on one of the walls for support, panting, exhausted. Even Thomas himself knew he wasn’t going to make it. He didn’t even bother going for a run and instead, just slid down the walls, breathless.

And something clicked inside of Newt. He didn’t even glance right or left, didn’t really care what others would say. He didn’t know what pushed him to do it. Staring at Thomas, his Tommy, alone in the maze, trapped and in obvious pain and fear snapped Newt out of it all.

Newt dashed. Stepping into the border. He was in-between the two walls now. He felt the cold walls brushing his shoulder in an attempt of squishing him. But he ran. Didn’t look back. Blocked all the calls for his name.

He ran like his limp wasn’t even there anymore.

“Newt, no!” He heard Thomas screeched his lungs out on the other side of the corridor, running towards him. But it was too late. The door closed behind the blond. Trapping him inside the maze, blocking all the noises from the Glade. Newt tripped and fell forwards, before dragging himself away from the door in shock and adrenaline.

“Newt, what the hell are you doing?” He hear the brunet yelled harshly from the distance. The blond visibly flinched as Thomas crouched next to him. Though there definitely was anger in his tone, only guilt and concern were present on the brunet’s face. “Why on earth did you do that?” Thomas slumped down and sat next to Newt, still trying to catch his breath. Newt averted his gaze from the large door trapping them to the exhausted runner besides him.

“Bloody hell ya stupid shank!” The blond didn’t even think twice before wrapping his arms onto Thomas’s neck, pulling him into a deep hug. “What the hell were you doing?! You got me worried sick!” Newt’s voice was laced in overwhelming relieved. Thomas stared at the blond in awe, before reluctantly moving his right hand on Newt’s back, and his left on his head in an attempt to return the hug.

“I’m sorry.” Thomas buried his head on Newt’s neck, felt his blond hair tickling his face. He tightened his grip on Newt’s back, pulling him closer, hugging him tighter. “I’m so, so sorry.” He should feel angry, that Newt broke his own rules and came chasing him into the maze, but instead, Thomas felt an immense feeling of relieve. He was glad to be with the blond once more. As wrong as it sounds, he was grateful he wouldn’t have to spend the whole night all alone in the maze.

Newt was the first to pull out of the hug, much to Thomas’s dismay.

“Guess I’m back inside the maze now.” Newt attempted a pathetic chuckle. He was clearly doing his best in trying to keep up a calm and collected front.

“You shouldn’t have done that Newt. You were the one who said no one’s aloud to go into the maze besides the runners.” Thomas frowned at the blond. Newt sighed in defeat. It wasn’t like he planned on ditching the rules and ran towards the maze without thinking. He just did it. “Why’d you do that?” Newt paused, thinking of the answer. Amazingly, with the brunet now by his side, he wasn’t that much afraid of the being in the maze anymore.

“I think you should know the answer to that question more than I do Tommy.” Newt laughed, a sound that immediately calmed Thomas. A sound that made him forget where they both were. Thomas crooked up a half-smile. “Come on now. No point in fretting over that anymore.” Newt stood up, pressing his fear down. He lend out a hand to help the brunet stand. Thomas couldn’t help notice how beautiful the blond looked, with the remaining rays of sunlight washing down over him. His tall lean, figure and his messy blond hair. To his genuine smile and dark beautiful brown orbs, looking down on him. He was mesmerized by the sight.

“Yeah, guess you’re right.” Thomas paused and grabbed his hand with a smile. “Mr. Hypocrite.” He continued with a smirk.

“Oh, shut it Tommy.” Newt pulled him up. Just when the two started walking forwards, a sound resounded throughout the long corridors of the maze. Both Thomas and Newt knew perfectly where the noise came from. A griever.

The two stopped for a while. Their breath hitched in utter shock. They stared at each other, dread visible in the other’s eyes. The noise, the whirling and crackling seemed a lot closer than they thought. Then the distinctive, loud groan of the creature, just over one of the corridor walls. None of them thought they would appear that fast. Suddenly, the blonde’s heartbeat quickened at an almost impossible rate. The noise cracked Newt out of his little fantasy. That everything was going to be okay as long as Thomas is with him. He was back in the maze. Not only that, there was no way out. They were confined, no open doors back to the maze. Not until tomorrow morning. Trapped by the same old walls once more. Not only that, the grievers were out loose, trying to track the two gladers. Trying to tear them apart mercilessly. The thought nauseated him.

“Newt, we gotta go.”

Newt stumbled a couple of steps backwards before falling on his butt. His heart stopped and breathing almost became impossible. He felt his whole body shook as he kept on staring ahead.

“Newt.” Thomas rushed over quickly and crouched next to the blond once more. “Newt, hey, you alright?” His tone was rushed as he kept his gaze on the Newt. He knew something was up with his companion.

“No, no, I can’t do this. Shuck it Tommy, I can’t do this.” The blonde’s eyes were starting to tear up. His body shook and horror painted on his face. It didn’t take long before he started gasping for breath. The blond clenched his eyes shut, trying to block all his surroundings. He instinctively placed both arms around his head protectively, blocking everything out of his view. Thomas widened his eyes in shock.

He had never seen the second-in-command acting so helpless, looking so broken. Ever since he came to the Glade, it was always Newt that had seemed to know everything he’s doing. The blond always seems to know the answer to every situation. He was the voice of reason. Looking at the blond so weak and vulnerable made Thomas very uneasy somehow.

“Newt, hey, listen to me. You can do this. Come on, I’m here with you.” The brunet rasped out. Knowing that the creature is probably lurking close, adrenaline started rushing in. “It’s okay, you’re not alone. Now we need to get going or the grievers will catch up.” Thomas tried to reason out with the blond. But nothing seems to work. Newt was still on the ground trembling, trying to breath. His eyes were wide open, laced in nothing but pain and horror.

“No, Tommy. I seriously can’t go back in there. You don’t understand... You go, I’ll catch up later.” He stuttered, face pale. Thomas knew he had no more time to spare.

“You know I can’t do that, Newt. Just---” Thomas seemed lost for words for a moment before cupping Newt’s cheeks, forcing the blond to look at him. “Just look at me. Don’t look at anything else. Focus on me. Trust me Newt. We can make it out here, alive.” Thomas stared at the blond for a couple of minutes. Their gazes locked into one another and everything went perfectly still. The darkness of Newt’s orbs seemed to absorb the brunet, pulling him into the pitch black abyss. With their faces inched apart and Thomas’s hand, slightly stroking Newt’s soft cheeks. “Trust me, Newt. Like you always does.”

And Thomas leaned in. An inch, then couple of inches more, Newt didn’t even react to the slightest, Newt didn’t pull back. He flickered his eyes shut and gently crashed their lips together. It was a blast of sensation. He felt Newt’s body tense for a while, before completely giving in. Much to Thomas’s surprise, Newt returned the kiss. There were no tongue movements involved, just a soft, innocent kiss. Which felt good though. Felt hella shucking amazing for the two. And both could swear they’ve never experienced something like this even before being sent into the maze. It didn’t last long before the Newt pulled away reluctantly, and Thomas let go. The two remained silent for a while, keeping up with the staring competition. Newt’s heart was beating even faster now, in a good way. He’d forgotten the last time he felt like that.

“You good now?” Slightly panting, Thomas asked half-jokingly. Newt held a small, genuine smile, seemed to have calmed down.

“Thanks Tommy.”

***

“Tommy, we’ve been walking for ages now. Are you sure we’re not lost?” Newt questioned, he could’ve swore he’d seen the same set of walls for the second time already now. The sun set almost a while ago, leaving the two gladers wandering the dark maze in complete darkness.

“Well, we don’t really have anywhere to go, right? I mean, we’re just avoiding the grievers.” Thomas answered nonchalantly. They’d been walking for quite a while now, turning and moving based on mere instinct. They would stop once in a while to take a rest and would pace up whenever the loud growl of a blood-thirsty griever would be heard. Luckily they still haven’t met the horrid creature. A loud, rustling noise behind the two caused Newt to flinch and paled. Though the darkness was absorbing, Thomas could see right through the blond.

“Hey, don’t worry.” Thomas brushed his fingertips around Newt’s hand. “I’m here. It’s probably just some birds or something.” With that, the brunet entwined his long fingers around Newt’s cold, sweaty ones. Somehow, that calmed the blond down for a while.

“Don’t underestimate me Tommy.” Newt retorted, a small smirk tugging on his lips, yet instead of pulling away, he tightened his grip on the brunet’s hand. Thomas chuckled dryly in response. “What time is it anyway?” Newt asked looking around. It felt like they’d been walking for hours now.

“I don’t know. Probably around… eight o’clock? Or nine maybe…” Thomas answered, looking just as confused as he’d always been. The two kept on walking for another while, drowning in the deafening silence. No one said a word, each trying to stimulate the right thing to say at the moment. This was strange because back in the Glade, Thomas and Newt seemed to be able to make a conversation out of everything, always stealing an hour or two to talk every day after Thomas comes back from running. Just the two of them. But with the Glade keeping the busy all the time, the two rarely ever had a chance to talk anymore. Newt missed those times where they would just sit by the forest and talk.

"Did you find anything today? When you were running the maze?" Newt asked, looking around. It was as if nothing had changed inside the maze. Same old walls, same old heavy atmosphere. Newt tried to put everything aside and focus on the brunet next to him. 

"No." A short and firm response from Thomas came. Newt tried to hide the disappointed feeling gnawing inside of him. "But it's too soon to give up. The exit's bound to be somewhere around here." The brunet glanced over at him. The blond merely nodded in agreement. 

"What do you plan on doing after getting the shuck out of here, Tommy?" His question caught Thomas off-guard. "You gotta have some plans, right?" Thomas had been thinking about that. And of course the blond would always appear in his future plans. But of course the brunet couldn't say 'I'd like to stick around with you forever if possible' out loud. 

"Dunno yet... Maybe find a job. Live in an apartment. Live a normal life. But you never know right?" Thomas smirked at Newt in the dark. 

"Wow, you've really thought this through haven't you?" The blond remarked sarcastically. 

"Well, what about you Newt?" Thomas threw the question back at the blond. He couldn't really picture what the outside world looked like. Neither could Newt he bet. But of course, somewhere deep inside Thomas, he craved to continue living in the outside world with his fellow gladers. Living a free and peaceful life with his newly-made friends. Especially the blond he'd grew so fond of from the very beginning. Newt seemed to space out for the moment, thinking of an answer. 

"I'd go anywhere as long as I'm with you." A deafening silent follows. Newt obviously didn't think before saying that sentence. He started cursing loudly in his mind. It wasn't lie though, he knew that for sure, Newt felt something different whenever the brunet is present close to him. A feeling of calm, a feeling of comfort he really enjoyed. The darkness was perfect for the two. Newt was glad Thomas couldn't see the deep red painting his face and Thomas was glad Newt couldn't see the small smile lingering on his lips. 

"I mean... I'm okay going anywhere as long as I'm with all of you... I guess..." He fixed awkwardly. Thomas tried to muffle a laughter, amazed at how 'cute' the blond was being at the moment. "Oh shut it Tommy." Newt growled, pouting, which made Thomas's stomach churn once more in delight. The brunet kept on the fit of laughter as the blond kept on sending him his sharpest of glares. 

"Yeah, yeah... I get it Newt." Thomas finally said, gently tightening his grip on the blonde's hand. "I guess that'd be really nice won't it?" Newt opened his mouth, wanting to say something. But closing it immediately, trying to restructure the sentence. Something that's been sticking on his mind for a while, but he didn't quite know how to begin.

"What's wrong?" Thomas asked with a gentle smile on his face. The blond took a deep breath before looking straight at the brunet. 

“Tommy… What you did back there…” Newt wandered off. But before he could clarify his sentence, a loud growl echoed behind the two, followed by the sound of mechanical gears, spinning and crunching. The two immediately froze, rooted on their spots. Thomas looked back slowly and the look of horror on his face, lit by the moonlight, was something Newt had never seen before.

“Shit.” Thomas hissed under his breath, tightening his grip on Newt’s hand. Newt’s body tensed at the sudden change of atmosphere. “They’re here.” Newt instantly looked back along the long corridor behind them. The end of the corridor was impossible to see, due to the mist and darkness.

“The grievers?” Newt squinted to see what lies on the other end of the corridor. Horrified at the sight he’d stumbled upon, he squeezed the brunet’s hand back. On the far end of the corridor of the maze, covered in cold mists, were limbs, mechanical limbs crawling out of the fog. The whirling and crackling became more and more audible as the creature slowly made its’ way to the two.

“Run. Come on Newt! Run!” Thomas had to yank Newt away to pull him out of his daze. Before they know it, the two were running down the endless, corridors of the maze. Refusing to let go of the other’s hand along the way.

They knew this was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you all for reading! comments and criticisms highly appreciated :)


	2. Inside The Maze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Newt and Thomas spends a night inside the maze. With the company of a griever, of course.

They ran and ran, through the dark of the night with death behind their trails. Thomas was pulling Newt as they ran, trying to make the blond run faster. But they both knew Newt wouldn’t be able to keep up any further. A dull ache started to linger on the blonde’s right ankle, only to be made worst when he tripped over a tiny rock in the middle of the run. He toppled a couple of steps forwards and pain shot through his whole leg. 

“Shuck, Tommy!” He shrieked as Thomas supported him by the arm and kept on running, pulling the flailing blond next to him. 

“Just keep going Newt, come on stay with me.” Thomas’s face was filled with panic and horror, as he racked his brain, trying to find out what they should do next to avoid getting stung, or ripped to pieces by the griever. The griever wasn’t far away, always behind their tails by 3 feet or so. Doesn’t seem to be the type that’ll just willingly give up after a short chase. Thomas’s face lit up for one second, after looking far ahead on the other side of the corridor. “There! There’s an intersection ahead, you go left and I’ll go right.” 

“What?!” Newt glanced at the brunet. “No Tommy, that’s shucking stupid! We are not splitting up!” Newt detached himself from Thomas and started running, no, limping next to him. “What if it goes after you?!” 

“That’s the whole idea.” Thomas muttered, face looking stern and sure. Newt’s eyes widen in shock. “You know you can’t hold on much longer with that limp.”

“No Thomas! I’m not taking chances.” Newt yelled, fatigue started draining the two. The griever didn’t even look slightly tired, probably because 75% of its’ body is made out of weird-looking mechanical limbs. The adrenaline filled their bodies to the brim as they kept on running towards the intersection. 

“Trust me, Newt! I know what I’m doing! Trust me like how you’ve always do!” The intersection was getting closer and closer. Newt knew by then that he had no choice but to trust the brunet. Again, like he always does. Newt nodded stiffly before detaching himself from Thomas. 

“Meet me on the 3rd Section.” The blond mustered up, staring at Thomas’s face. He could make out the brunet’s silhouette, nodding curtly. Then the two made sharp turns, Newt to the left pathway and Thomas to the right. Newt didn’t even look back as he start running down the cold, dark, empty new corridor of the maze, alone this time. From all the fusses and noises behind him, he knew the griever had went after the brunet. 

It all happened so fast, he couldn’t believe he’d left Tommy, the newbie alone, chased by a non-stop killing machine. He stopped walking and leaned on a wall for support, before sliding down miserably. He knew this wouldn’t be as easy as how Minho word it to be. 

“Bloody hell Tommy.” He muttered, sighing as he kept on trying to regain his breath. Nothing could be done now except going to the 3rd Section in hopes that the brunet is already there, waiting for his arrival. 

*** 

The walk towards the 3rd section was long, quiet and eventless, to say the least. Well, the blond was glad nothing popped out of the darkness. Yet even after he stop running, his heart still managed to beat out its ribcage once in a while, occasionally happens when he thinks of what Thomas was probably facing right then. 

He was mindlessly kicking a pebble on his way when a crash resounded, followed by the griever’s ear-twisting wails. It didn’t sound that far away. 

The first thing that popped into Newt’s head was Thomas. He immediately turned his head around, heart pounding like crazy. The thought of Tommy, his Tommy, caught by the mechanic creature clenched his insides. He stopped walking for a while and looked back, trying to make out any other sounds that seemed to be coming way behind him. 

Nothing but silence welcomed him.

“T-Tommy?” He called out in a shaky, low voice. Newt took an unsure step towards the source of the noise, nothing but fear and worry present in his mind. There it was. He heard the sound again, this time louder. He took another step forward before tumbling into a run, towards wherever the noise was coming from. 

He didn’t even care anymore, he was tired of just waiting and the thought of Thomas being even slightly hurt, nauseated him. He broke into an awkward run, trying to put all the pressure to his undamaged foot. He pushed his body forwards with all the strength he has, ignoring the gritting pain lingering on his bad foot. 

He took a turn, trying to map out where the noises were coming from. Newt was supposed to be the reasonable one. But searching for the source of a mysterious griever-caused noise (which there was probably a chance of Thomas not even being there), abandoning Thomas’s orders to meet him at Sector 3 is probably not the most reasonable thing to do at the moment. 

Then again, even if Thomas was there with the griever, what could Newt even do? He and his limp would probably drag the brunet down even further.

“Ah, shuck it.” Newt picked up his pace and ran even faster. He didn’t even care anymore, anything is better than just walking around doing nothing, plainly waiting for Thomas to magically kill the griever like he did before. 

Newt took a couple more turns as the mechanic gears of the griever gradually became louder and louder in his ears. One last turn and there it was. 

The ivies on the wall were twisted all over the griever’s body, restraining it. A couple meters away from him, the griever was contorting sideways and upwards in order to break free from the restrictive ivies. Newt stared at the scene, part relieved that he wouldn’t have to be chased by the griever so early, and part dreading as to where Thomas was. Newt took a step backwards. Seeing that the brunet was nowhere in sight, the only place he could think of as to where Thomas could possibly head out to at the moment, was the 3rd Sector. 

“Shit.” Newt stared at the griever, slowly but surely, untying itself away from the ivies. 

“Newt?” He heard a call for his name and looked up, way up on top of the maze’s walls, stood Thomas. Though it was dark, the moon looms over the brunet brightly, illuminating his facial features. He looks nothing but exhausted. 

“Tommy!” the blond formed a smile, relief started flooding into him, knowing that his companion was alive and okay. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” The brunet snapped, causing him to flinch. Newt felt a tad lost for words for a moment, before arching his brows in annoyance. 

“What am I doing here? Bloody hell Tommy, if you weren’t such a bloody slinthead all the time and at least try to hold yourself from doing unnecessary, idiotic things that could end your shucking life then I wouldn’t have—” Newt’s loud voice, laced in irritation was abruptly cut by the griever’s moans, as it was seconds from freeing itself away from the ivies. 

“Newt! Save it for later. Listen to me, go ahead! Just keep running towards Sector 3, if I’m not mistaken, a pathway’s going to close there! We’ll drive away the griever just like how Minho and I did it last time.” Thomas started running up upon the maze walls towards Newt. 

“What about you?” The moment the blond had said that, the griever broke completely free from the ivies. 

“Just go! I’ll climb down when I have the chance! Now go, Newt!” Thomas yelled that at the top of his lungs as he balanced himself up on maze walls. Newt didn’t take a moment to even think before dashing backwards into a full-speed run. The griever right trailing quite far behind him. The blond thought that everything was going fine so far, until he felt a strange sensation clawing up his bed leg.

“Not now, not now.” He muttered under his breath, panic overwhelming. If his foot fails him now, he’s gonna be dead for sure. Before he knew it, running through the dark corridors of the maze, Tommy was right next to him. He didn’t even noticed when the brunet had managed to climb down the wall and joined him. 

“Come on, just a little more!” Thomas yelled, his voice sounding strained and hoarse. Newt didn’t have time to spare a glance at him, but the second cold, long, slender fingers slipped itself inside Newt’s own, all worries and fear magically disappeared. Just like it did before. 

He felt reassured that everything was going to be okay afterwards. 

Thomas pulled Newt’s hand, leading him by a couple of steps as the blond tried his best to keep up with the runner. The griever, unlike Newt and Thomas didn’t feel remotely fatigue, as it kept on closing in on them, decreasing the gap. 

After a couple of turns and corridors, they finally reached the pathway Thomas was taking about. A pretty long corridor, framed by two tall walls, ready to enclose. By then, the two walls were moving already, closing inch by inch. 

“It’s closing!” The two came to an abrupt stop, contemplating on what to do next. Thomas glanced back and widened his eyes. The griever was approximately three steps behind them. 

“Shit.” Thomas cussed loudly and literally dragged Newt forward, through the corridor. The creature behind them was luckily dumb enough to follow. Newt didn’t bother complaining, because he knew running their lungs out then was the only choice they’ve got. But looking at the tall walls looming over them, steadily moving in an attempt to crush the two, it was almost impossible to reach the other side unscathed. 

“We’re not gonna make it!” The blond yelled out as they were only half-way through and the walls were seconds from colliding onto one another. 

Just when they were around ten steps away from exiting the corridor, the two walls were barely enough for the griever. The griever’s moans were abruptly cut as the two walls were starting to squash the mechanic bug dead. 

“Shit, sorry, Newt.” Thomas looked back at the blond. It was too dark to make out his facial expressions by then, but Newt suddenly felt a horrible, sickening feeling residing deep inside of him. 

“Tommy?” The moment he’d called out to him, Thomas grabbed the older of the two by the arm and yanked him forwards with all his strength, and just when Newt was toppling in front of him, he pushed the blond forwards, throwing him a couple more meters ahead. 

Newt yelped and tumbled forwards, before falling onto the ground. He was crouching on the other end of the corridor when he’d realized what the brunet had done. 

“Tom—” When Newt took a glance backwards, something heavy crashed onto his back, sending him tumbling forwards a couple more steps. Something, which Newt presumed to be the brunet, had knocked him frontwards with full-force.

Right then, the sound of the two walls colliding resounded throughout the dark, empty maze. 

Nothing but their pants and heavy breathings could be heard afterwards as dreading silence welcomed them. Newt could feel nothing but pain of being squished underneath the slightly larger brunet above him. There limbs were awkwardly entangled and Thomas was lying right on top of Newt. The two boys tried to catch their breaths in silence, relief flooding their entire body.

“Oh my god.” The blond heard Thomas groaned above him, followed by a short, shaky chuckle. Newt couldn’t think of anything right to say, so instead he let out a laugh, ignoring the scratches and bruises all over his body, ignoring the fact that Thomas was still weighing upon him. He focused all his thoughts to Thomas above, safe and alive. 

Somehow, Thomas, just as lost as to what to do next, started laughing along the blond awkwardly.

“We made it.” Thomas sat up with much difficulty, his rasped breathing coherent. Newt’s shaky laughter subsided as he too, supported himself up by the elbow. “God, we actually made it.” Before Thomas had any chance to get up, the blond beneath him moved towards him at the speed of lightning and engulfed him in a warm, heartfelt hug.

Newt’s long fingers rummaged through Thomas’s hair affectionately. Thomas didn’t think twice before snaking both his hands around the smaller boy, burying him in a tight bear hug. The dark atmosphere surrounding the two felt immensely light. 

“Bloody hell, Tommy.” He breathed out, speechless, only a huge wave of relieve pulsing rapidly within his veins. He tightened his hold around the taller boy, burying his face on the crook of his neck. Thomas gladly abide, his hand clenching onto the back of Newt’s hoodie like a lifeline. It felt as if letting the blond go would be the last thing he’d do right then. 

“I’m so sorry.” He rasped out. “I didn’t mean to drag you into this mess.” He shook his head. Newt pulled away for a moment, staring into Thomas’s orbs with fierce intensity. Had he seriously apologized to him? Disregarding the fact that Newt was the one who came after him into the maze? 

“I shouldn’t have—” Thomas’s words were cut short and the next thing he knew, Newt’s lips were on his. A wave of shock pulsed within Thomas, but he didn’t think twice before closing his eyes and kissing him back, just as fierce, just as passionate. The kiss was deep, deeper than their last. Newt closed his eyes, focusing solely on the boy before him, from the thundering beat of his heart, loud and rhythmical, to his uneven, ragged breathing. Newt pulled away, out of breath, before Thomas drew him back in. His hand crawled up to Newt's face, cupping his cheek, kissing him once more. 

Thomas held Newt gently, carefully, as if he were some sort of delicate, fragile porcelain he would break at the slighest of touch. 

"You're okay." He heard Thomas drawl out in his ears, as low as a mere whisper. "We're okay." He repeated like a mantra. Newt could faintly hear the small smile on Thomas's face as he repeated the words over and over again. A small sincere smile bloomed across his lips, nuzzling deeper into Thomas's embrace. 

Although they were both still inside the maze, this was the first time in years, Newt felt safe. 

They both did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi...hahaha... so it's been around a year and four months since my last update (oops) i seriously never thought i'd take procrastination this far. god im so sorry. i hope there are still people willing to read this old thing :// and i hope ya'll enjoy the new chapter! thank you so much for the sweet comments, all the kudos and bookmarks as well, they really make my day uwu

**Author's Note:**

> comments and criticisms highly appreciated :)) thank you all for reading


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